Inspired by the idea of using stock tanks as planters, Ivette Soler built a similar raised beds of corrugated metal in her front parking strip. Following are her instructions, reprinted with permission from Timber Press; they’re from Soler’s recent book, The Edible Front Yard: The Mow-Less, Grow-More Plan for a Beautiful, Bountiful Garden.

Material for 1 round bed

(12 in. tall by 5 ft. wide)

8 panels of corrugated metal, cut to size. (Soler’s panels were 28 in. wide, but width varies depending on where you buy it.)

Drill

Rivet gun and rivets

8 rebar or steel rods (20 in.)

Wire hardware cloth to line the bottom of beds

Directions

Lay out the panels so they overlap one another by 2 in.

Starting at one end, prepare to attach panel to panel by drilling 3 holes down each seam, evenly spaced, through both panels.

Using your rivet gun, place a rivet in each of the holes.

You will now have 1 long strip of metal. Take it to the designated location in the hellstrip and stand it up.

Rivet the final seam that will turn the strip of metal into a circular bed.

Place the support rods on the outside of the beds and pound them into the ground until they are even with the top of the beds.

Cut lengths of hardware cloth to fit inside the bed. Place them in the bed so they overlap and curve up the sides.

The possibilities are endless when it comes to building your own bin. The only things you really need for your worms to thrive are coverage, drainage and aeration. Below are two very popular methods for building your own home worm bin.

Plastic Bin

Plastic bins are one of the easiest ways to go, all you need to do is drill holes in the bottom for drainage. If the bin is going to be outside with no other rain protection, you’ll need to use a lid. If using a lid, you also need holes near the top for aeration. If you’re not using a lid because your bin will be indoors or covered by some other means, you don’t need a cover. You’ll just want to make sure to use extra bedding or straw to cover the food scraps so unwanted pests don’t get in.

Drainage holes. We recommend 1/4″ holes every 3-4 inches.

Aeration holes. These holes can be a little bit smaller (1/16″.)

Wooden bin

Another very simple option is to make a bin out of wood. A wooden bin can be anything from a basic box with a piece of plywood as a lid to a box that doubles as a coffee table!

The term “guerilla gardening” is coming up more often in gardening circles. Websites, magazine articles, and even sections of gardening books are devoted to the subject. Here’s a quick explanation of guerilla gardening and its history.

Answer: Put very simply, guerilla gardening means that you’re gardening on land that doesn’t belong to you, without permission from the land owner. This could mean gardening in a vacant lot, or in a street median, or in a neglected planter in a public area.The term was first used in the early 1970s by Liz Christy, founder of the Green Guerilla Group in New York. Guerilla gardening is a radical form of gardening, undertaken by activists who often draw attention to issues such as land use rights and urban blight. Others just want to make their neighborhoods more attractive, and do it under the radar rather than going through the red tape and bureaucracy that official projects require.

Guerilla gardeners often work in the dark of night to avoid detection (this also adds to the element of surprise when a formerly overgrown public median is full of flowers or herbs the next day!) but some work during the day, so members of their community can see them at work and hopefully be inspired to do some guerilla gardening of their own.